Los Angeles Times Questionable Behavior

Is the LA Times Partially Responsible for a Homeless Death?

Imagine the outcry if a major American paper put a picture of a women walking home in the dark on the front page of the paper when illustrating a story about a serial killer targeting women who were walking home late at night.  What if they identified the woman's name and the very next week she was targeted and killed by that same serial killer.  There would be protests and calls for a resignation of the editor from other papers.  This happened in Los Angeles and there has not been a peep from the media or even an apology from the editors of the Los Angeles Times.  

The LA Times posted on Friday January 6 a story about police warning homeless people to go inside in Orange County California with a photo accompanying the story.   This photo was taken on January 5, 2012 of John Barry, 64 (identified as a homeless man in the caption along with his name) talking to Anaheim Police Mike Lynch by LA Times photographer Allan Schaban.  As we all know from watching Criminal Minds serial killers feed off their own publicity in the local newspapers.  They often play to the local news, and FBI and local law enforcement often use the media to draw out a serial killer.  A week later on Friday January 13, Barry was killed by what police are claiming is the same serial killer who had targeted and hunted down this individual pictured on the front of the LA Times.  Photographer Schaban has to be feeling horrible that he did not hide the victims identity on the first photo.  The LA Times has said nothing in the week after the tragedy apologizing for their involvement in this case.  

We publish a paper so we have some understanding of the use of images in the paper.  Almost every time a newspaper features a homeless person, donors come forward to help.  It is almost always the case that the person experiencing homeless benefits from the publicity, but this situation was different because it involved a serial killer targeting a segment of the population.  This killer was hunting down a somewhat small community living within Orange County.  There were a couple thousand people homeless in a city like Anaheim at any one time.  Not a huge population vulnerable to this killer.  A newspaper editor in a modern American city should know what the rules are with regard to posting "bait" for a serial killer.  Law enforcement should have put additional protection on Mr. Barry when he was made the face of homelessness in Anaheim by the Los Angeles Times.   I am not saying that government should get involved in publishing decisions, because nothing done by the LA Times was illegal.  It just seemed unethical for the paper to identify a homeless guy while police were searching for a serial killer targeting homeless people.  At least, the LA Times owes the family and the community an apology.  They should compensate the family or the homeless community for using John Barry's image that led to his death. 

The alleged killer hunted John Barry.  In the article, Barry indicated that he was worried that someone was watching and following him. The alleged killer was watching Barry and then killed him when he was alone.  Witnesses followed Itzcoatl Ocampo, a recently discharged US Marine, who was arrested and charged with the killing of four people including Barry all of whom were experiencing homelessness.  I just don't understand why the Police and other media are not outraged over this story.  We mourn for John Barry and send our condolences to his family as well as the other three victims of the Orange County serial killer.

Brian
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Serial Killer and Hate Crimes

Orange County Captures Alleged Killer

Orange County and the city of Anaheim California are dealing with a serial killer targeting homeless people.  Today, the Los Angeles Times is reporting that the suspect in these murders of four homeless people is an Iraq War veteran.  The Orange County Register has done a great job in covering this story, and they report today that the Police Chief is confident that they have captured the man responsible for these deaths.  The national news has centered on a serial killer targeting homeless people, but these individuals were members of our society and were brothers, Dads, and co-workers of the other residents of this Southern California community. James McGillivray was killed Dec. 20, Lloyd Middaugh, 42, was killed in Anaheim on December 22, and then on Christmas eve Paulus Cornelius Smit, 57, was found dead near a library.  The last victim was only identified as John at this point.

The Register also covered the release of the National Coalition for the Homeless' hate crimes report which was released last week.  Advocates from Orange County have been regularly talking to the staff at the National Coalition and law enforcement has been in contact as they investigated this killer.  The report received a great deal of coverage throughout the United States as a result of the serial killer.  Most of the data in the report is from 2010, but it is still shocking to have all these vicious crimes laid out in one report.  Ohio once again was in the top tier of states with reported hate crimes with six incidents in 2010.  We have mentioned most of the incidents in the past on this blog, but there was one that we missed that happened in Youngstown Ohio:

YOUNGSTOWN, OHIO–November 4, 2010
Fifty-eight-year-old homeless man, Tommy was beaten and stoned by a group of young boys ages nine, thirteen, and sixteen. Tommy was well known in the neighborhood and could not defend himself due to his mental illness. The injured man was found by the police sitting on the ground and was taken to a hospital to be cared for. The group of boys is expected to be charged in juvenile court. Their parents will also be held responsible in accordance with the  “Parent Responsibility Act” for the delinquency of their children.

Florida was once again by far the most dangerous place in the country for those living outside followed by California and Texas.   Maybe all this attention on the issue will encourage elected officials to do more to protect the vulnerable and will encourage those living outside to accept help and come inside.  Also, considering the leading suspect in these murders is an Iraq War veteran, it is obvious we need to do more to reach out to those struggling with mental illness as they are discharged from a war zone.

Brian
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Boise and Fullerton Updates

Criminalization and National Updates

In 2009, the city of Boise Idaho passed a "No camping" ordinance to allow police to ticket those sleeping outside anywhere in the city.  Advocates and homeless individuals sued the city in order to strike down this broad law.   In 2011, the city amended the law to only allow police to ticket homeless people for "camping"  when the shelters were full.  This stopped the lawsuit which was declared moot, but it has scarey implications.  It has the impact of forcing people into shelter if they become homeless.  If there is a space available in Boise Idaho, you must sleep there or face a ticket from the police.  This is a backward way to provide help to those struggling with housing.  How can an agency or religious organization build a trusting relationship if the individual is forced into their care?  Isn't that a prison?  The National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty is taking the lead nationally to overturn this law, and are debating appealing the dismissal of the lawsuit.

Also, the County Prosecutor out in Orange County/ Fullerton California has charged two police officers with murder and involuntary manslaughter in the death of Kelly Thomas, a developmentally disabled homeless individual. The LA Times has praised the decision to charge the police officers, and I am pretty sure the National Coalition is going to weigh in soon on this issue. This arrest sends a signal to all law enforcement that they need to handle the mentally ill and developmentally disabled with some compassion or step aside and allow professional outreach teams handle the situation.  The description provided by the District Attorney in Orange County was chilling, and advocates are awaiting for additional charges against the other four officers who covered up this attack.  

Brian
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When Police Attack?

California Has an Issue with Rogue Police

There were two recent attacks by law enforcement officers on those experiencing homelessness in California.  All this is happening on the heals of another Governor of California vetoing adding homeless people to the hate crimes law.  In Fullerton California, a homeless man with a mental disability was beaten to death by police in early July 2011, and there has sprung up a series of protests and City Council inquiries into the death.  There were allegations that the police were injured in the encounter, this turned out to be incorrect.  The homeless man, Kelly Thomas, was hit with a stun gun in the encounter with the police, but that was not reported in the first release of information.  The officers are currently on paid administrative leave while the case is being investigated, which caused more anger at the August 18 City Council meeting.  

The other incident involved the Bay Area Transit Police on July 3 in which a homeless man, Charles Hill, was shot and killed. Much of the attention involving the case has been on the BART police shutting cell phone service in the hopes of shutting down a protest that were planned for August 2011.  But the protest was over the death a man who was reportedly drunk and carrying a knife and then shot by BART police.  San Francisco advocates are upset that a drunk man could not be restrained without using lethal force.  The video seems to show that the officer was not very close to the man, and did not seem to be in any danger. 

Both these incidents demonstrate that police are in the difficult position because they have to deal with individuals in our society that other institutions have cast aside.  Both our alcohol and drug system as well as our mental health system are allowing too many people to live without a home, and then the disabled often end up being housed in jail.  The other issue that is obvious is that police forces need better training for dealing with fragile populations such as the mentally ill or drug addicted.  Since society has dumped this responsibility on police to deal with homeless and disabled individuals, they should have extensive training on the interaction with homeless people.  Every police force should have officers assigned to be liaisons to the homeless social service providers to head off problems before they get out of control.  And, finally, I believe that California and every state needs to pass a hate crimes protection bill for homeless people.  We know from the National Coalition's report that homeless people are routinely targeted especially by young people.  I have to believe that if police are killing homeless people with little consequences that will set a tone in the community.  I fear that more young people will feel that society accepts some casualties within the homeless population, and will step up attacks on fragile and vulnerable individuals without a secure place to rest their head at night.

Brian
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Ohio A Dangerous Place for Homeless People

National Coalition Keeps Track of Hate Crimes

The Plain Dealer reported a hate crime against a resident of 2100 Lakeside Shelter this weekend. A group of teens attacked a homeless individual and stole his shopping cart. Ohio is always on the top of the list of states with a large number of hate crimes against homeless people put out by the National Coalition for the Homeless. Florida is by far the most dangerous state for homeless people in the United States with Ohio within the top five most dangerous states. NCH is right now preparing their hate crimes report. Look for it this fall.

County Prosecutor Bill Mason wonders at the end of the story why young people would attack a homeless person. Most readers were wondering the same thing. NEOCH believes that there should be additional penalties for those who target homeless people with violence. Mason's prosecutor lobby organization down in Columbus opposes adding homeless people to the hate crimes statute in Ohio. Mason also allowed the young people from Youngstown who came to Cleveland and attack homeless people with a stun gun to plead to misdemeanor charges and the teenagers only had to do community service. Maybe Mason will support a hate crimes statute in Ohio or will make an example of these teens to send a message that our society will not accept homeless people being easy targets after seeing the number of incidents increasing.

Brian
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Hate Crimes Against Homeless People

Ohio Identified as the Third Most Dangerous State for Homeless People

Over the past eleven years (1999-2009), advocates and shelter workers around the country have received news reports of homeless men, women and even children being harassed, kicked, set on fire, beaten to death, and decapitated. A new report released by the National Coalition for the Homeless documents a rise in hate crimes against homeless people. In Ohio, the number of hate crimes directed towards the homeless population rose to 13 in 2009 making Ohio the third most dangerous state in the union. Currently, the federal government does not recognize the homeless population as a protected group, vulnerable to hate crimes. The report, Hate Crimes Against the Homeless: America’s Growing Tide of Violence, documents all the attacks (just under 120) with 43 incidents resulting in death in 2009.

The FBI classifies a hate crime as “A criminal offense committed against a person, property, or society that is motivated in whole or in part, by the offender’s bias.” In 2008, there were seven hate crimes in the United States against protected classes that lead to death according to FBI statistics while there were 27 hate crimes against homeless people that lead to deaths according to the NCH research.

The hate crimes report was released in August 2010, and classifies the most dangerous states for hate crimes against the homeless as those with fifteen or more acts of violence carried out against the homeless population in a year. In 2009, Ohio officials reported a serial killer targeting vulnerable homeless women and a number of attacks on campsites in Cincinnati. Ohio was identified as the third most dangerous state in the United States, and fourth most dangerous state in the last 11 years.

Perhaps the most widely publicized case in Ohio was that of Anthony Sowell, the alleged serial rapist and killer. According to police and prosecutors, Sowell targeted homeless women in the Cleveland area, and is currently waiting trial on these charges. Sowell is innocent until proven guilty, but police investigations allege that he would lure these women to his home with the promise of drugs or shelter. By the time Sowell was discovered, he had allegedly killed 11 homeless women, six victims in 2009 alone, and their bodies were found inside and around property in which Sowell was living. After his arrest, two survivors came forward stating they had been raped by Sowell.

Homeless persons often live a transient lifestyle, with inconsistent contact with family or friends, making the population an appealing target for criminals to exploit. It is known that many of the victims’ in this case where not reported missing for long periods of time; also, many victims are unwilling to report hate crimes to the police.

While cases like Sowell’s receive a great deal of media attention, many of the violent attacks of the homeless receive minimal exposure. In the past ten years, hate crimes against the homeless have occurred in ten of Ohio’s cities. Those attacks consisted of 43 non lethal attacks and 17 fatal attacks.

In 2009, Cincinnati police reported that two separate hate crimes were committed against two homeless gentlemen. One man was physically and verbally assaulted for being homeless. When police questioned the attacker, he responded with indifference saying, “He was just a bum, who cares?” The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless cited this incident as a clear example of a hate crime. “The use of ‘bum’ clearly denotes a sense of inferiority,” said Josh Springs, executive director of the Cincinnati Coalition.

The second hate crime in Cincinnati in 2009 was even more violent. A homeless man, George Smock, was walking in front of the County Court House when four teenagers tried to kill him. Smock was doused in lighter fluid and set on fire by the teens. He neither knew, nor provoked his attackers. Onlookers extinguished the flames and saved Smock from severe injury or death. Although his attackers tried to take his life, Smock did not file a report immediately following the attack. When asked why, Smock replied, “I didn’t fill out a police report that night, which I should have done, but I’ve got to live out here.”

Interestingly, negative portrayals of the homeless receive a great deal of media attention and only stand to make the public more apathetic to the population. Movies like “Bumfights” can easily be viewed on You Tube. The “bum” is commonly used in film and television. The word “bum” degrades the population and implies that their struggles stem from laziness, not a complex web of societal barriers and holes in the social safety net. In addition, there is a correlation between the number of municipal laws directed at homeless people and the number of hate crimes directed at those experiencing homelessness.

Nationally, states are beginning to recognize the need for homeless people to be added as a protected class because of their vulnerability and fragility. The Hate Crimes Against the Homeless Statistics Act of 2009 is pending federal legislation currently before Congress. It was announced last week that there will be a Congressional Hearing in the US Senate Judiciary Committee to discuss the rise in hate crimes on September 29. This act would make the homeless population a protected group and raise the penalty for those attacking homeless individuals. This Act is sponsored by Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio, Congressman Dennis Kucinich and Congresswoman Marcia Fudge of Ohio. The City of Cleveland passed an ordinance in 2008, making repercussions for “intimidation” and harassment more severe if these crimes are perpetrated against an individual because of his/her homeless status. The Ohio legislature has re-introduced a bill (HB 509) to classify intimidation as an offense against homeless people in order to provide some additional protections.

The NCH report has extensive references of all the crimes that are documented across the nation against those experiencing homelessness. NCH has prepared a list of recommendations for states and local advocates of what they can do to protect homeless people from future attacks. Finally, the NCH Hate Crimes report provides model legislation for states and municipal governments to adopt in order to increase the punishments against those who are violent against those sleeping outside to try to begin to reduce hate crimes.

Brian
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Congressional Homeless Civil Rights Hearing

Judiciary Committee to Host Hearing on Hate Crimes

It was announced today the the Senate Judiciary Committee, for the first time ever, will host a hearing to talk about hate crimes directed at people experiencing homelessness. Get your TiVos set for C-Span 3, I would imagine around Midnight after Book TV on the 29th. There is a bill pending that would at least direct the Justice Department to study the issue of attacks on homeless people. NCH will testify along with a family member of a victim and an expert from California who studies this issue.

NOTICE OF SUBCOMMITTEE HEARING

The Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs, has scheduled a hearing entitled “Crimes Against America’s Homeless: Is the Violence Growing?” for Wednesday, September 29, 2010 at 10:00 a.m. in Room 226 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building. The hearing is being called by Senator Cardin to chair.

Brian Davis

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Cincinnati Police Allowed to Run Over People

Another Reason to Boycott Cincinnati

There are so many reasons to stay away from the city of Cincinnati, and today the Cincinnati prosecutor's office announced one more reason. Prosecutor Joe Deters held a press conference to inform the community that Hamilton County would not pursue felony charges against police officer Marty Polk for running over and killing Joann Burton as she slept under a blanket in Washington Park in the Over the Rhine neighborhood. In Ohio, the County acts on behalf of the state to pursue felony (serious) charges, and the cities oversee misdemeanor cases. This is an unbelievable decision, and hard to make any other conclusion except that if this woman had not been homeless or had not been an African American or not been either this police officer would be waiting for a manslaughter trial to start.

Are homeless people so disposable in Cincinnati that police are free to kill them without criminal charges? Or is racism still alive and well within the Cincinnati judicial system? The prosecutor claimed the definition of a vehicular felony involved "heedless indifference to consequences and perversely disregarding known risks." This seems to be exactly what happened here. The police officer went up over the curb, and then drove off the path and then decided to drive over the blankets in the park in the daytime. How is that not a "disregard of known risks?" How is running over a person not considered ignoring the consequences of driving up on the grass? I just cannot imagine if a white baby were killed sleeping under a blanket by a police car while the parents were playing volleyball in the park, the the officer would have been immediately fired and charged with vehicular homicide. Besides not being homeless, what could Ms. Burton done to prevent her own death if this were an accident. She was asleep, and not bothering anyone. Should she have set up cones or flashing lights? Is the city going to provide traffic cones to indicate that a homeless person is sleeping to avoid these "accidents" in the future?

I don't understand how Cincinnati is so hostile to low income, homeless, and African American people. Elected officials have tried to close down the Drop In Center shelter for over 20 years. They have undercharged vicious crimes against homeless people on a regular basis according to the National Coalition for the Homeless hate crimes report. Officials never really healed the wounds from the 2001 riot in the Over the Rhine neighborhood. City Council has repeatedly passed laws directed at homeless people. The Cincinnati police have long been under the scrutiny of the Justice Department and community groups because of alleged racist behavior and an unusual number of deaths with young African Americans taken into custody. This decision this week to let Officer Polk off without criminal charges is just another in the long line of poor leadership within the City of Cincinnati, and another reason to steer clear of the City.

Brian
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Homeless Hate Crimes Bill Re-Introduced in Ohio

After Cincinnati Attacks, Ohio House Introduces Stronger Penalties

With the multiple attacks these last few months in Cincinnati, the State of Ohio has responded by introducing a bill that would allow prosecutors to increase the penalty for an attack or intimidation of people based on their lack of housing should the attacker be convicted. This is similar to the hate crimes laws in Ohio, and we hope will provide some deterrent to future attacks on those resistant to shelter. This is an extremely vulnerable population that lives without a door or a lock or the security that the rest of the population enjoy. And to have skinheads and young people go out hunting for homeless people justifies the state coming down with tough punishments on these individuals.

As Introduced

128th General Assembly Regular Session 2009-2010

H. B. No. 509

Representatives Murray, Foley

Cosponsors: Representatives Sears, Pillich, Hagan, Walter, Harris, Heard, Williams, B., Domenick, Skindell, Winburn, Fende, Gerberry, Harwood

---

A BILL

To enact section 2927.121 of the Revised Code to create the offense of intimidation of a homeless person.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:

Section 1. That section 2927.121 of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:

Sec. 2927.121. (A) As used in this section, "homeless person" means either of the following:

(1) An individual who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence;

(2) An individual who has a primary nighttime residence that meets any of the following criteria:

(a) A supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designed to provide temporary living accommodations;

(b) An institution that provides a temporary residence for individuals intended to be institutionalized;

(c) A public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings.

(B) No person shall violate section 2903.04, 2903.041, 2903.05, 2903.11, 2903.12, 2903.13, 2903.14, 2903.21, 2903.211, 2903.22, 2903.31, 2905.01, 2905.02, 2905.03, 2905.11, 2905.12, 2907.01, 2907.03, 2907.05, 2907.06, 2909.01, 2909.02, 2909.03, 2909.05, 2909.06, 2909.07, 2911.02, 2913.01, 2913.02, or 2917.01 of the Revised Code if the offender commits the violation with the intent to cause harm to any victim of the violation because that victim is a homeless person.

(C) Whoever violates this section is guilty of intimidation of a homeless person. Intimidation of a homeless person is an offense of the next higher degree than the offense the commission of which is a necessary element of intimidation of a homeless person.

We need to get other members to support this legislation and hold a hearing in Columbus on this bill. We will keep you informed.

Brian
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Update on Cincinnati Hate Crimes

Madness Captured, Hate Crimes Legislation Needed

The Cincinnati Coalition is keeping us up to date on the situation with regard to the attack on Robert Meehan. On the first posting, we had a strange comment submitted from a self proclaimed witness to the event. It has to be said that the comment from "the witness" does not match the security videotape. In addition, the Cincinnati police were clear that no crime justifies the beating that Meehan suffered.

The alleged attacker, Michael K. Taylor, a.k.a. Madness was captured late last week. Lieutenant Mike John of the Cincinnati Police department reported that Taylor was captured in Las Vegas, late Friday night (02/05/2010). Taylor will be extradited to local officials on Monday. Michael K. Taylor is charged with felonious assault. Witnesses say that he severely beat Robert Meehan on January 24th, near Bootsy’s Restaurant on Walnut Street in Cincinnati. Mr. Meehan was known to be a homeless man in the neighborhood.

The surveillance tape and witness reports explain that Mr. Meehan was picked up and body slammed to the sidewalk, he was punched several times in the face and struck with a beer bottle. Lt. John reported that this was the worst beating he has ever seen in which the victim did not die from the injuries inflicted. Further, there was not enough intact bone structure in Mr. Meehan’s face to do surgery. Robert Meehan was placed into a chemically-induced coma.

Mr. Meehan came out of his coma on Friday the 5th. He is coherent enough to know that he is in a Cincinnati hospital. Lt. John says the struggle is not over. It is essential for Cincinnati to show support for Robert Meehan in the courtroom and through the court procedure. Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) is part of a larger group from around the state and country that are pushing for legislation to be passed at both (State & Federal) levels, in order to prevent these types of hate crimes. Homeless individuals are a very vulnerable part of our society, therefore GCCH along with all the other Coalitions for the Homeless would like to see legislation passed on behalf of all homeless individuals, so that regulation will be enforced and the homeless will not be assaulted and taken advantage off.

The surveillance tape supports what every witness reports; that Robert Meehan was not aggressive, threatening or of a harmful nature towards Michael K. Taylor or the three women around him. Robert Meehan is the victim of a heinous hate crime that had the potential of killing him.

Brian
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Another Hate Crime in Cincinnati

Man Beaten Within An Inch of His Life

A man was “beaten within an inch of his life” says Cincinnati Police Lieutenant Mike John after a January 24 incident outside of a local bar/restaurant. Sunday morning at approximately 3:48am Robert Meehan was severely beaten just outside of Bootsy’s Restaurant at 631 Walnut Street. Just moments before he was beat, Meehan was recorded by a surveillance camera walking with a black man who is approximately 30-35 years old, 6'02"-6'03" in height and 225 lbs. He was wearing dark blue/black jeans, orange dress shirt, black jacket and black knit type hat. Three white women were also walking with the man in question along side of Meehan.

Meehan a 56-year old white man, is known to be a local writer, recently working to submit an article for Street Vibes. He gains much of his information from spending time at places such as bars where people socialize. Patrons and employees in the area of Walnut report regularly seeing Meehan. Patrons and neighbors report that Meehan is never disrespectful, never violent and has a calm disposition.

Lieutenant John says that this attack was “brutal and unprovoked.” Surveillance video shows Meehan and the other four people involved in a civil walk and conversation with no altercation. It seems that the attacker, without any cause, suddenly attacked Meehan. Lieutenant John says that really there never is a cause for such violence. The attacker picked up Robert Meehan, body-slammed him to the ground, punched him, beat him and reportedly hit him with a beer bottle. Lieutenant John says that this is “the worst beating [he has] ever seen, in which the victim did not die.” Currently, Meehan is in the ICU at University Hospital of Cincinnati in a medically induced coma. The beating was so bad that there is not enough bone structure left in his face to do surgery.

Meehan spends time staying with friends or spends time on the streets. Meehan is known by those who frequent the area surrounding Bootsy’s Restaurant and other local entertainment venues near Walnut and also Fountain Square. "It is difficult to understand why an individual would commit such a heinous crime against another person, especially a person who did nothing to provoke violence," said Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless director Josh Springs.

It is ironic that the attack occurred in the same week that the Cincinnati Coalition was hosting a forum on Hate Crimes against people who are homeless, and two weeks after an attack near the stadium of a man who was set on fire. Crimes such as these take different forms, but often are the most heinous and vicious. Michael Stoops from the National Coalition for the Homeless attended the forum to call attention to this disturbing national trend and the yearly report produced by NCH. The report details the frivolous attitude of many if the violent young people caught attacking those experiencing homelessness. Many claim an attitude of, “He was just a bum, so he doesn’t matter.”

With this mindset attackers target hate toward those who are vulnerable and just minding their own business or quietly trying to survive from one day to the next. The Cincinnati Coalition will be working with activists from around Ohio to strengthen state laws to punish those who attack homeless people with additional punishments after these two attacks.

Brian Davis
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Crimes Against Homeless People

New Homeless Hate Crimes Report Issued

The National Coalition for the Homeless issued their annual look at attacks on homeless people yesterday. It got front page coverage on Saturday in the New York Times with details of attacks in Las Vegas and they mentioned the brutal murder of Anthony Waters in Cleveland. Today, NPR's Weekend Edition interviewed Brian Levin a criminologist from California who argued that we needed to add homeless people to current hate crimes laws. Levin helped NCH compile this report. He talked about the reality that we are seeing twice as many attacks on homeless people according to this report when compared to every other hate crime leading to murder (as tracked by the FBI). This report also shows that 70% of the crimes are perpetrated by those age 25 or below. We need Ohio legislators to add homeless people to the hate crimes statute.

Brian
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Hate Crime in Central Ohio

Young People Attack Homeless

In Reynoldsburg, Ohio just outside of Columbus, a group of young people attacked a man who was sleeping behind a hardware store. Robert Wirtz was known to the community as a quiet man who did not bother anyone, but lived outside. People in Central Ohio have raised money for Wirtz's medical care, and the Mayor of this suburban community has gotten involved. Eugene Clemons was attacked in Cleveland last April, and had to spend weeks in the hospital and in nursing care. The Veterans Administration eventually caught up with Clemons and were willing to offer housing to this former Marine. He is doing well in housing. Both individuals were attacked by young people.

This is a common occurrence, and the Columbus Dispatch has done a good job of looking at this issue. They interviewed Michael Stoops from the National Coalition for the Homeless and a lawyer from California who has done a great deal to address this problem. It only brings up that we need Rep. Foley's hate crimes bill to act as a deterrent to these kind of attacks in Ohio. If Maryland can pass a homeless hate crimes bill, why not Ohio? For those who do not believe that enhanced punishments do not work, look how attacks on minority and religious institutions have fallen over the last 40 years since hate crimes legislation swept across the United States.

The National Coalition for the Homeless hate crimes report will come out this summer. This is strategic in that many of the attacks happen during the summer when kids are out of school. They get bored and they find easy targets. These targets have become fixtures in our communities. Homeless people are hardly noticed in our cities anymore. Pedestrians walk over, ignore and turn their heads when confronted by a homeless guy or a panhandler. For the young person who has grown up ignoring homeless people their entire life, it is not much of a stretch from ignoring to vandalizing to violence. The problem is that homeless people are not mailboxes or washboard signs that can be tagged and beaten with baseball bats. Suspects are in custody in Columbus for this brutal attack. No one was ever arrested in the Cleveland attack on Mr. Clemons.

The above photo is by Larry Whitted from our 2007 Photography class.
Brian
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Two Interesting Stories on the News...

Speaking of Voting....

CNN had an interesting piece that may have gotten lost in the news of American financial meltdown here.

Also, CBS had a story about hate crimes against homeless people. Just a brief update on crimes against homeless people in Cleveland.

1. There was a paintball attack in August against a homeless person walking from the bus to the men's shelter.

2. After the game last Sunday night against the Steelers, a group of Brown's fans attacked a sleeping homeless person downtown and put him in the hospital. We have not been able to confirm this as a hate crime, because the guy is still hospitalized and not willing to talk right now. But we heard from two people that the guy was beaten to the point that he needed 50 stitches. We will continue to follow up to see if we can get confirmation and will be allowed to release his information publicly.

NEOCH coordinates a meeting with all the outreach workers in Cleveland once a month to gather information about attacks, violence and trends within the homeless community.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Quick Takes

A Few Notes...

Cathy Alexander announced her resignation from the Domestic Violence Center. This is one of the most critical director jobs in the homeless community, and it is important to have the best and brightest director in this position. DVC is the one organization that can effectively remind the community that homelessness can strike anyone including families and middle class women who flee their houses because of violence. Ms. Alexander is going to work for Mental Health Services, because if current trends continue, everyone serving homeless people will eventually be working for Mental Health Services. MHS has taken over nearly all the permanent supportive housing, outdoor feeding, the entry women's shelter, North Point transitional, and much more. So far, I have not heard any concern from public officials that the "Milo Syndicate" of homelessness may be able to corner the market and drive up all prices for providing shelter and services. I am sure that I will be replaced with a kindler, gentler advocate when MHS finally takes over NEOCH.

Peace Activist Memorial

ACLU of Ohio Board member and long time peace activist, Al Stern passed away in the last week. Anyone who worked for peace is a friend to homeless people. The fact that Mr. Stern also worked for the ACLU, a partner of NEOCH on many civil rights lawsuits in the 1990s, makes it necessary for us to mark the passing of such an important activist. With American troops occupying a couple of other countries and the unprecedented assault on individual rights in the United States seen since 2001, this is a horrible time to lose such an important leader in our community. A celebration of Al's life is planned for Saturday, July 13, 2008 at 1 pm with reception to follow, at Fairmount Temple, 23737 Fairmount Blvd. in Beachwood. The friends of the ACLU will gather to share stories, sing songs, and have a great time in memory of a man who worked so hard, for so long, to make this world a better place.

Please RSVP to director(at)acluohio.org. More details will be posted as soon as they are available on the ACLU website.

Police respond to the death of Anthony Waters
Edward Tomba, Deputy Chief of Special Operations of the Cleveland Police did respond to our inquiry about the investigation of the death of Anthony Waters. He said that there were a few witnesses, and that the Police were looking at a group of young people. They had confiscated a bicycle and were processing it. The Police were still investigating and were still dedicating resources to find the attackers. He assured us that he would keep us informed about progress.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Funeral Services for Anthony Waters

**Corrected Information
Anthony Waters will be remembered at a service on Thursday July 3 at the Coreno Funeral Home in Cleveland between 6:00 and 8:00 p.m. The Coreno Funeral Home is at 13115 Lorain Ave. (near Triskett and right off the Lindale speed trap on I-71). They heard about the issue on the radio, and offered their services to the family. This is the reason for the delay of one day and the relocation from the Maple Hts facility. The Lakeside shelter is also working with family members on a brief remembrance for Mr. Waters at the shelter in the next week. No word yet from the City about progress made toward solving this case.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

On a Desolute Stretch of Street...

Please Help Us Find the Killers of Anthony Waters

Maybe it was a misguided notion, but I understand the logic. Anthony Waters walked down the industrial part of East 55th to and from the shelter in order to avoid trouble. I talked to a few people in the neighborhood who felt it was better to walk near the houses, because no one wants trouble near their front door. They would have told the young people on the bikes to move it along. Waters was in greater danger in this particular part of East 55th than he would be walking in the more populous parts of Kinsman or Bessemer Rd.

It seemed like such a peaceful place with the exit ramp of 490 to the north and the tow/impound lot, the railroad bridge and a bunch of trees at Bessemer. On Wednesday night, Waters was attacked by a bunch of kids and beat to death. Only one month ago, the National Coalition for the Homeless determined that Ohio was one of the fourth most dangerous places to live for homeless people. We see how this can have deadly consequences.

If you were driving by and you did not stop to help, please come forward now and talk to the police about what you saw. It has to be tearing at you to realize that you witnessed the brutal beating to death of a human being. Any information that you might have can help the police track down these killers. Call the Third District at 216/623-5300 to report any information about this heinous attack.

We will pass along information from the shelter as it comes in about a memorial service or information from the City as it comes available. Mr. Waters had done a lot of work trying to kick the addiction devil hanging over his head, but it usually takes a couple of setbacks before a guy can break the hold alcohol has on some people. He had bounced around the shelter a couple of times as well as sleeping outside when he could not control his addiction. I hope that someone will come forward so that we can provide some peace to the family of Mr. Waters. What kind of cowards jump a defenseless man already down on his luck for a couple of bucks and then beats the guy to death?

After the dust settles and their was time to grieve, we can set about passing Representative Mike Foley's hate crimes bill to add homeless people to the state hate crimes definition. We hope that this will provide some pause to young people who target homeless people, but for now it is time to mourn and remember Anthony Waters.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Upcoming Anti-Violence March

Calling Attention to the Violence Against Homeless People

I have recently come in contact with a group over at the Original Harvest Missionary Baptist Church that is putting together a City-wide Youth & Unity March Against Violence. The march occurs at the church (7101 Kinsman Road) this Saturday, June 21. Registration begins at 11 AM and the march itself begins at noon.

With the dramatic rise in hate crimes committed against homeless people, especially with the growing number of kids that are video recording themselves committing these horrible violent acts and placing them on the internet, taking a stand against violence is very important to homeless advocates. Here in Cleveland, we have seen the effects of this violence within the homeless community. Back in April, a man was attacked by kids wielding a board with nails sticking out of it. Attacks tend to increase over the summer, so we’ve got to address this problem now.

NEOCH will be at the march and we recommend you show up as well. For more information on the march contact the Coalition at 216/432-0540.

Joshua
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Ohio Needs a Homeless Hate Crimes Bill

Hate Crime Against Homeless Report released today

Rep. Foley's bill made national news today in the USA Today. The national hate crimes report was released today and can be downloaded from the National Coalition for the Homeless website. NEOCH helped put this report together, which showed Ohio is the fourth most dangerous state in the United States for homeless people. Please do not read it cover to cover. The brutality and depravity of some of our nation's young people will turn your stomach. We hope this is a call to action for Ohio state legislators to add homeless people to the state hate crimes statute and pass Foley's bill. We hope that the County prosecutors drop their opposition to this bill. If any other minority or religious group was being targeted at this level, there would be a national outcry and immediate legislation passed at a national level.

There was also a nice profile of a local homeless individual, Eugene Clemons, targeted two weeks ago by a group of thugs on the East Side of Cleveland in today's Plain Dealer. I have a hard time understanding how a veteran who served his country and worked a full day of work is beaten to the point of being hospitalized by a group of young people. We did not identify this gentleman in this blog because he did not give us permission. I have been looking for him for a couple of weeks. I am glad that the Plain Dealer caught up with him. The Cleveland Police Chief did respond to our letter complaining about the police not taking a report. Summer is the worst time for hate crimes against homeless people, and we need to meet with the new Third District (old fifth district) commander to talk about this disturbing trend.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Hate Crime Against Homeless in Cleveland

System Failed One Homeless Man

Last Saturday, a homeless guy was sitting near the freeway overpass on Superior Ave. on a milk crate. He was not bothering anyone, just enjoying the first nice weekend of the year in Cleveland. He was attacked by a group of young people who beat him for five minutes with a board with nails in it. He stumbled over to the Lakeside Shelter, and collapsed.

The worst part is how this homeless guy was mistreated by the system. The Police refused to take a report because the guy did not know his attackers. MetroHealth treated his broken wrist, but not the leg wounds from the nails. He was discharged almost immediately despite his open wounds. Those wounds are now infected and he needs almost round-the-clock care. Beaten by a group of disturbed individuals, then violated by the police and finally kicked to the curb by the hospital. A day in the life.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.